Migrating Elephant Statues Make it to NYC

Summary

Podcast Summary: All Of It — Migrating Elephant Statues Make it to NYC

Host: Alison Stewart (WNYC)
Guest: Ruth Ganesh (Co-founder, Coexistence Collective)
Date: September 26, 2024
Episode Focus: The Great Elephant Migration public art installation in NYC

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Overview

This episode of "All Of It" explores The Great Elephant Migration, an outdoor public art installation featuring 100 life-sized elephant sculptures currently displayed in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District. Alison Stewart interviews Ruth Ganesh, co-founder of the Coexistence Collective, the group behind this project. Together, they dive into the story behind these remarkable sculptures, their environmental and cultural significance, and the broader aims of fostering coexistence between people and wildlife.

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Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. What is the Coexistence Collective?

[02:03]

• Ruth Ganesh introduces the Coexistence Collective as a group of indigenous artisans from Tamil Nadu, southern India.
• These artisans live closely with wild elephants, whom they know intimately—each sculpture is modeled after a real elephant from their region.
• Ruth comments on the artisans’ remarkable ability to capture each elephant’s distinctive character:

  “They are an incredible group of artisans who have figured out how to make each one of the elephants they know in the wild almost perfectly. I mean, actually perfectly, I would say.” — Ruth Ganesh [02:14]

2. Origins of the Elephant Art Migration

[02:35]

• Ruth explains that about ten years ago, she envisioned migrating 100 elephants across America as a spectacular conservation statement.
• Her decades of involvement in elephant conservation and discovering the artisan community gave real depth to the project.
• The artisans themselves live where the world's densest overlap of humans and elephants occurs, and have sustained a peaceful coexistence with the animals.

  “Rather than it just being 100 elephants, we thought, wow, wouldn’t it be great to tell this particular story to the world and create, recreate those wild elephants in sculptural form.” — Ruth Ganesh [03:22]

3. Materials & Environmental Impact

[03:38]

• The sculptures are crafted from Lantana camara, a highly invasive plant in India, originally from South America.
• Lantana is choking forests and protected areas, pushing animals like elephants into human-populated regions.
• By using Lantana for the sculptures, the project demonstrates a practical use and hopes to create an economic incentive for its removal:

  “We decided to make the elephants out of that invasive to demonstrate a use and hopefully create an economy for its removal at scale...” — Ruth Ganesh [04:13]

4. Exhibit Journey & Upcoming Destinations

[04:37]

• The installation arrived in NYC after Rhode Island and will remain until October 20.
• Next stops include Miami (Art Basel), and tentatively Houston, Montana (Blackfeet Nation), Jackson Hole, and Los Angeles.

  “Miami for art Week and Art Basel... Yes, exactly. Then Montana to Blackfeet Nation, where buffalo are being reintroduced to a landscape there by indigenous led. And then we are aiming to add Jackson Hole and then LA for the finishing line.” — Ruth Ganesh [04:52]

5. Message & Inspiration

[05:25]

• The central message: coexistence. If India, with the world’s largest population, can not only protect but increase its elephant and tiger numbers, there’s hope for human-animal coexistence everywhere.

• Ruth frames it as a lesson in sharing space:

  “If in a place like India, where... managing to live with the largest land animal, and yet the number of elephants and tigers has gone up, then maybe we can, you know, we can find some inspiration in that... In one sentence, I guess it would be: share space, human race.” — Ruth Ganesh [05:28]

• India bucks the global trend of wildlife decline, making coexistence a story worth amplifying:

  “In a world of doom and gloom where all animals seem to be up against it, India really stands out as a country that has, you know, increased its human population but also increased all the number of their... challenging animals.” — Ruth Ganesh [06:14]

6. Adopting (Buying) an Elephant Sculpture

[06:24]

• Elephant sculptures are available for purchase, with proceeds supporting both the artisans’ communities and conservation efforts globally.
• Four sizes, ranging from $8,000 (babies) to $22,000 (Tuskers); baby elephants are especially in high demand:

  “There seems to be huge demand for babies in particular. The little babies are $8,000 and there’s a long queue... And that money is split between supporting the indigenous community who make them and all the profits go into different conservation efforts in America and around the world.” — Ruth Ganesh [06:32]

• 21 conservation partners benefit from the project’s proceeds.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Ruth Ganesh, on the genesis of the project:

  “It kind of dropped randomly into my head about 10 years ago that it would be so cool to migrate 100 elephants across America.” — [02:35]

• On the choice of materials:

  “It’s the second most invasive in the world and it’s sort of choking all of the protected areas and forests... So we decided to make the elephants out of that invasive.” — Ruth Ganesh [03:44]

• Core message:

  “Share space, human race.” — Ruth Ganesh [05:34]

• Conservation impact:

  “There’s 21 different conservation partners who help people overlap with various different animals in different places who benefit from the proceeds.” — Ruth Ganesh [07:12]

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Important Timestamps

• 01:21 — Alison Stewart introduces the weekend in NYC and teases the elephant art installation.
• 02:03 — Ruth Ganesh explains the Coexistence Collective and artisan origins.
• 02:35 — How the art installation project began.
• 03:38 — Materials and the invasive weed Lantana camara.
• 04:37 — Details on the exhibit’s location, duration, and next destinations.
• 05:28 — The message behind the installation and what New Yorkers can learn.
• 06:24 — How to buy an elephant sculpture and support conservation.
• 07:15 — Conclusion and thanks.

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Takeaways

• The Great Elephant Migration art installation is a vibrant blend of environmentalism, community art, and global conservation.
• At its heart, the project models how humans and wildlife can harmoniously share space—even as populations grow—and urges societies everywhere to take inspiration from India’s coexistence success stories.
• Supporting the project, through visiting or purchasing a sculpture, directly benefits artisan communities and international wildlife conservation groups.

Visit the exhibit in the Meatpacking District before October 20th—and experience a powerful call for coexistence, set against the backdrop of New York City.

Transcript

[Ruth Ganesh]

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[Ruth Ganesh]

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[Ruth Ganesh]

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[Ruth Ganesh]

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[State Farm Representative]

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[Alison Stewart]

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[State Farm Representative]

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[Ruth Ganesh]

Listener Supported WNYC Studios.

[Alison Stewart]

This is all of it. I'm Alison Stewart and it's almost the weekend. Maybe you're heading to the Brooklyn Book Festival or you're planning to go to the Atlantic Antic on Sunday. Or perhaps you'll be spending some time with some pachyderms in the Meatpacking District. A public art display consisting of 100 elephants, real size, spanning their times from Gansevoort plaza up to 9th and 14th, just across from the Apple store. There are some on Horatio street, there's some on the west side Highway. It's called the Great Elephant Migration and is the work of the Coexistence Collective. Here to tell us more about it is Ruth Ganesh, co founder of the Coexistent Collective. Nice to meet you.

[Ruth Ganesh]

Hi Alison.

[Alison Stewart]

So tell us, what is the Coexistent Collective?

[Ruth Ganesh]

It is a group of indigenous artisans from southern India and Tamil Nadu who all live in very close proximity with the real wild elephants on which the herd is based. And they are an incredible group of artisans who have figured out how to make each one of the elephants they know in the wild almost perfectly. I mean, actually perfectly, I would say.

[Alison Stewart]

So how did the idea of this elephant public art come about?

[Ruth Ganesh]

So we, I mean, honestly, it kind of dropped randomly into my head about 10 years ago that it would be so cool to migrate 100 elephants across America. I've been involved in elephant conservation for a couple of decades. We've done a lot of public art over the years, and it just seemed like the biggest idea we could stretch to. But it was discovering this community in India that really gave the depth to the idea where it's the creators of these elephants live in the most dense overlap between people and elephants anywhere on the planet. And they live with these elephants in a remarkable way. You know, they live with them in a pretty peaceful way. They really understand their personalities, their different characters traits. They've named them all. So rather than it just being 100 elephants, we thought, wow, wouldn't it be great to tell this particular story to the world and create, recreate those wild elephants in sculptural form.

[Alison Stewart]

So what are the sculptures actually made of?

[Ruth Ganesh]

They're made of this very invasive weed called Lantana Camera. That's. It's a shrub, South American in origin, and it was introduced by British tea planters to India many, many years ago. And they used to have it as a decorative plant around their bungalows. And it's now run all over India. It's. It's the second most invasive in the world and it's sort of choking all of the protected areas and forests. And you can't eat it, no animal can eat it. And it's very hard to pass through it. So it pushes animals outside of those protected areas and into, you know, human habitation, so into like towns and cities and down roads and crossing farmers land. So we decided to make the elephants out of that invasive to demonstrate a use and hopefully create an economy for its removal at scale, because I think it's like 40%. It's a huge proportion of India's protected areas are overrun with this weed.

[WNYC Host]

The show travels from Rhode island over the summer. It's here until October 20th. And then I think they go on to. Is it Montana or Los Angeles?

[Ruth Ganesh]

It's Miami. Miami. That's it. We're heading to the sunshine as it gets a bit cooler in New York. So Miami for art Week and Art Basel. And they'll be on Miami beach between 36 and 37. And then. Yes, we're actually just in talks with Houston and then. Yes, exactly. Then Montana to Blackfeet Nation, where buffalo are being reintroduced to a landscape there by indigenous led. And then we are aiming to add Jackson Hole and then LA for the finishing line.

[WNYC Host]

People love taking pictures with them. I stood out there for a good half an hour. People just are enamored with them. But they seem to have a message.

[Alison Stewart]

What do you people.

[WNYC Host]

Can people learn from the elephants?

[Ruth Ganesh]

Yes. The message we're trying to get across is that if in a place like India, where, you know, you've got the densest number of people in a country, the biggest population in the world, managing to live with the largest land animal, and yet the number of elephants and tigers has gone up, then maybe we can, you know, we can find some inspiration in that and, you know, find ways to share space with animals in our own back gardens and backyards all over the world. So that, that's its message. It's, you know, in one sentence, I guess it would be share space, human race. But ultimately we're just really wanting to tell the story of India, something, you know, in a world of doom and gloom where all animals seem to be up against it. India really stands out as a country that has, you know, increased its human population but also increased all the number of their sort of massive, charismatic, but very challenging animals. So it's an inspirational message.

[WNYC Host]

You can buy one. I understand. How does that work? How much are they?

[Ruth Ganesh]

Yes, you can buy one. And we. There seems to be huge demand for babies in particular. The little babies are 8,000 and there's a long queue. We welcome that queue getting even bigger. And then you. Yes, each there's four different sizes. You can buy a teenager, you can buy a matriarch, or you can buy a Tusker. And they sort of, they go up incrementally. So it's 8,000 for baby, then 14 for an adolescent and then 18 for matriarch and 22 for a Tuscan. And that money is split between supporting the indigenous community who make them and all the profits go into different conservation efforts in America and around the world. So there's 21 different conservation partners who help people overlap with various different animals in different places who benefit from the proceeds.

[WNYC Host]

You can check out the great elephant migration in the meat packing districts until October 20th. Thank you so much to Ruth Ganesh, co founder of the Coexistence Collective. Thanks Ruth.

[Ruth Ganesh]

Thank you.

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